Audio mixing
A mix has the same depth as a story, and roughly the same number of decisions. Almost none of them are audible on their own.
The short version
What you get. Clear speech, balanced music and effects, and a mix that supports the piece.
Is this for you? For speech, music or effects that compete, or levels that vary between scenes. A single clean voice usually needs lighter treatment. Where the recording fused the sources into one sound, the mix can do little, and the fix starts at the microphones.
What leaves your plate. Level, balance, tone and spatial detail, with creative choices that affect your brand discussed with you.
Start with the Free Audit.
The voice is the fixed point
Clarity first, then placement
We keep the voice clear and stable, then arrange music and effects around it. Where movement in the stereo field helps the picture, we use it deliberately.
Music that lifts a lesson without racing it
Music can add energy, but speech needs to stay intelligible. We often use modest ducking under the voice, with manual adjustments where the material needs closer attention.
Automation where it belongs, judgement where it does not
We automate repetitive adjustments and make the remaining choices by listening. Decisions that affect the brand’s character are discussed with you.
The room is a choice somebody makes
Near-binaural placement where a space deserves to be felt, mid-side work where the room should be wide and the voice should not, a solo that cuts through without being louder than anything else. A mix has a depth axis and most video mixes never use it.
What is happening under the fader
The processing chain
Multi-track assembly across the microphone sources. Phase correlation checked before anything else. Frequency build-up managed where sources overlap instead of notched away afterwards. EQ chosen per voice and per room. Saturation where a thin source needs weight it never had. Sidechain compression between music and speech. Mid-side processing for width. Then level automation across the whole timeline, moving with the piece.
The same rule as everywhere else
Fix it in the recording, perfect it in the mix. A mix cannot invent separation that was never captured, and it cannot un-hear a room that swallowed a voice. What it can do, when the recording gave it something to work with, is make every one of those decisions disappear.
At the bench
The work, demonstrated
Try a decision from the craft: drag, tap or toggle, then read the trade-off.
These are illustrative models; no partner’s results are shown.
More demonstrations at the bench →Audio is the invisible king of a video. Nobody notices it, and a retention graph usually does.
The picture gets the compliments; the sound, more often than not, is why the second half gets watched.
What changes for you
Speech is easier to follow, and music and effects support it without competing for the same space. The treatment follows the recording and the purpose of the piece.
Related: Noise removal · Mastering for platform · Phase alignment · Multi-microphone setups
Send recent videos. We will listen for the main audio problems and suggest what to address first.
Request your Free Audit.
Three fields, and a written reading back.
Your audit usually arrives within three working days. We use your details only to reply to your enquiry.
What you will get
What is working, what could improve and whether we can help.
Two or three priorities, with the reason for each.
A recommended next step, even if that step is not us.
There is no obligation to continue. We only arrange a call if you ask for one.
The work, written up
The case studies keep their dates, sources and limits visible.
See the casework →